Sofiane Diop, a French professional soccer player of diverse ancestry, was born to parents of mixed origin: a Moroccan mother and a Senegalese father.
However, Diop tried fruitlessly to select one out of all three for his senior international career after having the choice between France, Senegal, and Morocco.
Reportedly, the French recently defended the flag of Senegal after a protracted absence, refusing to choose between France and Morocco for his international career.
The Tours-born Sofiane Diop currently plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Nice.
Diop started his youth career with Tours Football Club, a French association soccer club based in the city of Tours.
After 8 years in Tours, Sofiane played with US Chambray for a season and moved back to Rennes in 2015.
However, his senior career started with the B team of Rennes. There he made a total of 10 appearances and moved to Monaco to play for their B team.
Moreover, he also made a total of 76 appearances with their A team before being loaned to the Football Club Sochaux.
Additionally, the soccer star has represented France in U18, U19, U20 and U21 soccer matches.
The number 10 is currently in the media limelight after his choice for the Senegal Senior National Team surfaced online.
Sofiane Diop Parents: Ethnicity And Origin
The soccer prodigy is originally from Tours, one of the largest cities in the centre-Val de Loire, France. However, the parents of Sofiane Diop hail from two different ethnicities.
Sofinae’s father, Manou Diop, hails from Senegal, whereas his mother, Leila, roots in Morocco.
Moreover, Diop holds both the French and Senegalese nationality but plays for France in its Youth national team.
The Diop parents met in Tours during their studies, living in the same university residence near the IUT in Saint-Symphorien.
The two have been together ever since, and they later moved rapidly to Les Fontaines.
When their third kid was born, Sofiane’s parents finally decided to purchase their own apartment after moving around a little.
“My father is of Senegalese origin and my Moroccan mother explained Sofiane Diop to Onze Mondial. My mother’s family lives in France.” Diop talked about his mixed ethnicity in an interview.
“So I saw them almost every weekend, unlike my father’s family, which is in Senegal. As a result, my father often sent me alone to Senegal during the summer holidays because he was working,” he added.
In addition, Leila and Maou are pleased with their 23-year-old son’s rapid advancement in the soccer world.
“My father liked to play with his friends on Sundays; he took me with him, I liked it, and I was able to make my parents understand it,” Sofiane recalls how he owes his father his choice to favor soccer.
More On His Brother: Edan
The 19-year-old younger brother of Sofiane, Edan, is a youth product of Tours who plays midfielder for Ligue 1 club Monaco.
Edan signed the first professional contract with Monaco in August 2022. Moreover, the box-to-box midfielder made his professional debut as a substitute in a February UEFA Europa League match against Bayern Leverkusen.
The younger Diop also represented France in the U19 soccer games in 2022.
